God created the world out of nothing. As long as you are not yet nothing, God cannot make something out of you. - Martin Luther

~~~~~~~ SPECIAL THOUGHTS:

IS THAT YOU GOD?

I have two sons who are now grown. When they were little, every night I would hold them and rock them in my favorite rocking chair, tuck them into bed, and say their prayers with them. And then I would say positive affirmations to them such as, "I am so glad that God sent you to be a part of our family," "I am so proud of you," "I love you devotedly," "You are very important to me," and so on.

I would often whisper these positive affirmations in their ear while they were sleeping. I didn't know if this ever had any influence on them or did any good, but I knew it wouldn't hurt them.

I love to tell how, early one morning about 5 a.m., I slipped quietly into my youngest son's bedroom through his open door. I was certain he was asleep--as he looked like an angel--so I leaned over and whispered in his ear, "O beloved of the Lord." As quick as a flash he spun his head around and, looking upward, said, "Is that you God!?"

I was totally taken aback, but when I regained my composure, I whispered again in his ear, "No, it's not God, but he sent me to tell you that."

On another occasion this same son was very upset with me and blurted out, "Why did you have me anyhow?"

And as quick as a flash I replied, "Because you are a part of God's eternal plan."

And he is. And so are you. And so am I. And that's why we are here on earth.

Barna Research Group phoned 3,764 randomly selected Protestant congregations to test their availability. They were unable to establish contact with anyone at 40 percent of them, despite repeated attempts. Nearly half of those churches lacked an answering machine. In other cases, voice messages were unanswered. - By Danny Von Kanel